IMPORTANT! BTEA Safety Brief

Welcome to the Building Trades Employers’ Association of New York's (BTEA New York) monthly Safety Brief, your virtual briefcase of important safety news and updates. This digital publication contains highlights from the BTEA New York's Construction Safety Committee's December 20^th meeting with representatives from the New York City Department of Buildings (DOB), Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY), New York City Department of Design and Construction (DDC), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA).

Occupational Safety and

Health Administration

The updated Injury Tracking Application (ITA) is now available and can be found here, where you can receive information about electronically submitting your employers’ injury and illness data from OSHA Forms 300, 300A, and 301. The data collected will assist in the evaluation of workplace safety, understand industry hazards, and implement worker protections.

Businesses that meet certain size and industry criteria are required to electronically submit injury and illness data annually to OSHA through the ITA. Visit the ITA Coverage Application to determine if you are required to submit. Also, review this Fact Sheet which provides information on important changes to ITA reporting for this year.

Data collection for calendar year 2023 will begin on January 2, 2024 and must be submitted by March 2, 2024.

A record-keeping webinar hosted by Region 2 compliance assistance specialists is scheduled for January 24, 2024 (details to follow). The webinar will kick off a monthly "lunch-and-learns" series as part of OSHA's Four Seasons of Safety.

Fatality statistics for 2022 show a troubling rise in construction-related deaths nationally – an increase of 11 percent. Every 96 minutes, another worker doesn't go home. Fatal overdoses are up 13 percent across all industries. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not count Covid-19 fatalities as construction or workplace-related deaths. OSHA’s press release can be found here.

OSHA is also considering an enhanced enforcement approach to safety violations, which includes instance-by-instance citations for each worker exposed and ungrouping citations for severe and repeat violators. Also noteworthy is enhanced enforcement for engineered stone fabrication and installation, which carries a high risk of silica exposure.

Other safety reminders: Personal protective equipment (PPE) needs to fit correctly. Oversized gloves and other equipment increase the risk of accidents. Also, cold weather season raises the risk of hypothermia and other cold stresses.

Fire Department of the City

of New York

FDNY is looking to double its lithium-ion battery task force -- refurbished batteries account for 78-80 percent of battery-related fires. FDNY is working with the City Council to advance solutions. Also, the FDNY continues to build the ranks of its inspectors. With 45 recent inspector graduates, 49 to graduate in January, and another 40 expected in April, the FDNY will be at 85-90 percent of pre-COVID levels. Moving forward, all inspectors must meet OSHA 30 requirements.

MTA Construction & Development

November saw a 58 percent decrease in reported incidents from October. Specifically, there were 12 incidents resulting in six lost times and two recordables. Fortunately, there were no serious injuries reported for the month. Year-to-date stats for injuries and lost times are on par with 2022—struck-bys/against accounted for most incidents and recordables for 2023.

In November, there were 47 incidents with 48 injuries and two fatalities. The first fatality involved a worker in the Bronx who fell while installing a panel without a harness. The second incident involved an electrocuted worker. The deceased is believed to be a maintenance worker – not a construction worker – a fact that may impact year-end calculations for construction fatalities.

Falls were the leading cause of injury – a reminder to pay attention to ladder safety.

Communications & Events

· Safety Brief: November 2023

· Fast Four: November 2023

Other Business

· The next Safety Meeting is scheduled for January 17, 2024, at 8:00 a.m. It will be a hybrid event, with in-person attendance at 1325 Avenue of the Americas and remote participation access.

· Starting in January, in accordance with recent legislation, the number of construction superintendent jobs allowed at any given time on a project will be reduced from five to three.

· The District Council recommends that carpenters with SSD 52-hour cards register a year before expiration.

This report was provided by the BTEA New York

The Building Trades Employers' Association of New York (BTEA) is the construction contractor's unified advocate for construction safety standards, professional development, government affairs, public relations and fostering communication between public officials, public and private owners, labor, and the public. Realizing that a construction industry is essential to the vibrant future of New York City, its activities are dedicated to a building environment meeting the highest of environmental standards, integrity, cost efficiency, productivity and value that contributes to improving the quality of life in New York City. The BTEA represents 24 Construction Manager, General Contractor, Subcontractor and Specialty Trade contractor associations with over 1,200 individual contractor members.

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